Seeking to Meet in Indonesia

Government Targets to Bring 400,000 MICE Visitors to Indonesia in 2014

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(5/2/2014)

Forming an intrinsic part of government plans to increase national tourism earnings to Rp. 15.84 trillion (US$1.44 billion) is the target to attract 400,000 foreign visitors for the meeting, incentive, conference and exhibition (MICE) sectors.

Quoted by Beritabali.com, the deputy-minister for Tourism and the Creative Economy, Sapta Nirwandar, speaking at a World Tourism Origanization meeting in Bali, said: “Visitors from the MICE segment in Indonesia can increase 10% from last year to become 400,000. This is included among the 9.5 million visitors targeted nationally for 2014.”

Sapta, who made his comments on April 28, 2014, said that expenditures by MICE participants are estimated to be three times more than private tourists who spend on the average of US$1,200 per visit.

“MICE spending is much higher, three times more from normal tourists. The overall total potential for tourism income is around Rp. 15.84 trillion or US$1.44 billion,” said Nirwandar.

The Deputy-Minister said Bali was Indonesia’s most popular destination for MICE travelers, surpassing even Jakarta - the nation’s capital in this regard. He said Bali was not adding more convention centers and supporting infrastructure or the MICE sector.

“In addition to Bali, a number of other cities are adding MICE facilities such as Manado, Makassar, Palembang, Medan and Semarang,” added Nirwandar.

In order to further develop the MICE sector the Ministry of Tourism and the Creative Economy is the process of assisting government agencies win bids to bring international meetings to Indonesia. At the same time, the Deputy-Minister revealed that they are urging cooperatives and State-owned companies to hold meetings, conferences, seminars and exhibitions.

In closing, Nirwandar said: “There are still problems ahead in developing the MICE industry, mainly connected with physical infrastructure, accessibility and the fostering of skills among human resources that is still less than optimal.”